Israeli far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced that work would start on a long-delayed settlement that would divide the West Bank and cut it off from East Jerusalem, a move his office said would "bury" the idea of a Palestinian state.
The Palestinian government, allies and campaign groups condemned the scheme, calling it illegal and saying the fragmentation of territory would rip up peace plans for the region.
Standing at the site of the planned settlement in Maale Adumim on Thursday, Smotrich, a settler himself, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump had agreed to the revival of the E1 development, though there was no immediate confirmation from either.
"Whoever in the world is trying to recognise a Palestinian state today will receive our answer on the ground. Not with documents nor with decisions or statements, but with facts. Facts of houses, facts of neighbourhoods," Smotrich said.
Asked about his remarks, a US State Department spokesperson said: "A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this administration's goal to achieve peace in the region," and referred reporters to Israel's government for further information. The spokesperson said Washington remained primarily focused on ending the war in Gaza.
The United Nations urged Israel to reverse its decision to start work on the settlement. "It would put an end to prospects of a two-state solution," UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told reporters. "Settlements go against international law (and) further entrench the occupation."
Israel froze construction plans at Maale Adumim in 2012, and again after they were revived in 2020, amid objections from the US, European allies and other powers who considered the project a threat to any future peace deal with the Palestinians.
Restarting the project could further isolate Israel, which has watched some of its Western allies condemn its military offensive in Gaza and announce they may recognise a Palestinian state. Palestinians fear the settlement building in the West Bank - which has sharply intensified - will rob them of any chance to build a state of their own in the area.
In a statement headlined "Burying the idea of a Palestinian state," Smotrich's spokesperson said the minister had approved the plan to build 3,401 houses for Israeli settlers between an existing settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the Palestinian president's spokesperson, called on the United States to pressure Israel to stop settlement building.
"The EU rejects any territorial change that is not part of a political agreement between involved parties. So annexation of territory is illegal under international law," European Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper said.
Palestinians were already demoralised by the Israeli military campaign which has killed more than 61,000 people in Gaza, according to local health authorities, and fear Israel will ultimately push them out of that territory.
About 700,000 Israeli settlers live among 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Israel annexed East Jerusalem in 1980, a move not recognised by most countries, but has not formally extended sovereignty over the West Bank.
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